"He'll come."

The girl fixed her stare on the door, waiting for it to open. Always waiting.

"MinNa, it's time for dinner." A voice called from the adjacent room.

The girl ignored it, continuing to sit there, watching the door.

"He'll come."

Her mother appeared from the room. She knelt down beside her and hugged her shoulders.

"Let's go eat."

"I'm waiting for my brother."

"Let's go eat." She repeated with the monotone of someone who'd already memorized a script.

"He'll come. He'll come today."

"MinNa... Let's go eat dinner."

The woman got to her feet with a sad smile, pulling at the girl's hand. Just like every day.

But the little girl resisted.

"MinNa..."

"He'll come. He'll come."

The woman's face grew sad. Time healed all wounds, but sometimes the pain didn't disappear.

"He'll come."

The girl sat back down and the mother was left staring with a sad expression on her face.

"He'll come."

That iron conviction the mother had had at the beginning had gradually disappeared, leaving nothing but empty space. But the girl still had it, constant as always. She spent the afternoons in front of the door, mumbling again and again.

"He'll come."

On the other side of the door, someone knocked. Three quick knocks.

A huge smile formed on the small girl's face. She jumped to her feet and ran to open the door. The mother's eyes widened in shock, even more so when the door parted and a teenager – taller and more handsome than she'd ever seen him – entered with a wide grin. He dropped his bags and hugged his happy laughing sister.

"Did you wait for me, MinNa? You brother is back, MinNa. I'm back!" He said, rocking to the sides as they hugged, the both of them laughing.

"Minki..." The mother managed to murmur. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was it a dream? Another cruel creation of her subconscious, of which she'd wake up feeling even worse than before?

But no. This boy who smiled in the entrance of her house looked too real. This boy who was covered in bruises and scars, this boy with a cast on his leg who moved closer to her, half jumping and half limping with his arms spread and a large smile and tears in his eyes... This boy who hugged her warmly, whispering, "mama, I'm back". This boy was her son. Home again.

With them again.

She pulled away to look at him, grabbing the sides of his face with her hands, looking him over. He was there, he was real, he was her son.

He was taller than her now.

"Minki..."

She sobbed, and he started to cry too.

"I'm back."

"You're back."

There would be time for questions and explanations later. There would be time to put everything in order later. Right now, he just wanted to hug her.

"Hello. Who are you?"

But, of course, they weren't alone.

Ren turned towards the door. Baekho had picked up his bags and smiled down at his sister. JR waited behind him.

"We're just about to leave."

Despite having returned home, those words made his heart feel heavy. It wasn't enough to erase his happiness, but it did dampen it. Even so, he nodded and approached him, ignoring his mother's surprise.

"You'll call me?"

"As soon as I get a hold of a phone."

He smiled. He hoped that would be soon. He wouldn't be able to handle if it took too many hours to hear some news from him.

He moved closer and kissed him, hand running through his hair, not caring about their little audience. All he cared for were his lips, and how quickly the time approached that they'd have to separate, knowing he wouldn't be able to have them for who knew how long...

But he had to pull away. He stared up at him, unable to take the reflection of the pain of a goodbye in his eyes. He'd finally come back home. He had to be happy.

He turned to his companion awaiting nearby. He hugged him too, although it hurt to have to move away from Baekho for it.

"Take care, JR."

"You too, Minki."

He grinned, and then couldn't fight the urge to hug Baekho again.

"Call me."

"Yes."

They stared, only to kiss and hug again.

"Baekho, we'll be late." JR nudged at him.

He was right. Ren pulled away again, this time for good, but not before whispering a last "I love you" in his ear.

When the door closed again, Ren closed his fingers around air, tears on his cheeks. He turned towards his family, spreading his arms as his sister ran towards him. His mother hesitated a moment longer, still not understanding what she'd just seen. But she couldn't really care too much.

Her son was back.

****

From her seat in the garden, the woman sung to the horizon. At her feet, a little girl played with two dolls. And, a little further away, two boys ran through the grass, chasing each other with swords of wood.

Her voice wasn't sad, precisely, but it wasn't close to happiness either. It had a strange force, a strong emotion that made souls tremble. The man sitting at her side listened in silence, his face gaunt from having lost something important.

The moment lingered on while the shadows grew longer and the light dimmed.

And the woman stopped singing with her last note still suspended in the air, with her heart pounding and her eyes opened very wide. She stared in the direction of the two figures hurrying up the dirt path.

Three years had gone by. There was little left in this person of the son they'd taken from her, but she didn't have any doubts about who he was. She hopped up from her chair, running the last stretch that separated them. She halted a step away from the blond and muscled boy. She stared at his eyes, at that special smile that painted itself on his lips when he called to her, raising an arm towards her.

"Mom."

She jumped into his arms, suffocating him in a hug, covering him in kisses, not completely believing that she had her son in front of her again.

He pulled away from his mother's arms just to receive his father's, whose face was soaked in tears of the utmost happiness. He hugged them both, feeling that warmth of a family that he had missed so much. And then he looked at his siblings, who waited in front of them in confusion.

The eldest, nearly ten years old, didn't dare to come any closer. The other two were barely more than babies when he left. They couldn't recognize him.

Baekho knelt down to be at their height and, still crying from happiness, began to sing. He moved his hands with the rhythm of the nursery song he hummed, the same one that he'd sung to them so many times years ago.

The girl was the first to take a step forward, and in the next second all three were clutching onto their lost brother, laughing and crying from the joy of having remembered him.

He got to his feet with the girl clinging to his back, the smallest boy in his arms and the oldest wrapped around his leg. He turned to gesture his companion closer.

The young, black-haired man stepped forward, unsure.

"Mom, dad, this is Jonghyun." The blond introduced. "He needs a lot of love."

"Eh, you're going to make me blush..." The hinted at muttered.

Baekho chuckled, but his mother interrupted whatever reply he'd had, moving closer to grab the boy's gloved hands.

"Welcome home."

His father grinned as well, and the children didn't waste any time in rushing in to hug him like they'd done to their brother.

The closeness shocked him. Such close proximity when they barely knew him. But when they all turned their focus back to Baekho and began covering him in kisses and hugs, he saw his huge smile and supposed that he shouldn't have been so surprised by it.

He had a thorn stuck in his heart, a wound that had reopened with the sight of a united family, with the trips he'd taken to return his companions to their homes. His loss hurt him like never before, but they smiled at him and he let himself be swept up in their welcome. He allowed himself to be wrapped up in the warmth of a family that – although not his own – he knew would help to heal his wounds.

He thanked Baekho again, who simply gave him a smile before he went running through the garden with his brothers.

The little girl stayed with him. She pulled on his shirt and, when he lowered his gaze to see what she wanted, he found her with her arms raised, asking him to carry her. He lifted her up with tears in his eyes. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled.

This was a lovely welcoming. Although it broke his heart, it felt wonderful.

****

That evening, the couple were sitting on the couch in the main room of their home – a pretty place on the ninth floor of a Los Angeles skyscraper. From the balcony, the view of the sunset was amazing. But it had been years since it had stopped interesting them. They watched the TV with empty eyes, not paying any attention to the pretty blonde girl in the movie, who tried to get her coworker to notice her without much success. They held hands, searching for contact with the only family member they had left, to feel in company, so they wouldn't feel so alone.

Although three years had passed, they hadn't gotten used to this silence, to this tranquility. Before, their son would always be walking from once place to another in their home. An active boy. Impulsive. Never in one place. Many times, they had wished their son would given them a bit of this peace that they now hated.

Even Mel had changed. He had spent his days running after their son, playing at all hours, wagging his tail in happiness. Ever since he had left, he'd become a sad dog. Dull. He spent hours and hours sitting on the rug without moving at all. The dog had stayed, but a part of him had left with their son.

And there was Mel, on the rug as always, his eyes closed for the sunset that would be as sad and empty like the rest of them. Or maybe not.

The couple jumped in their seats when the dog lifted his head abruptly. His eyes opened wide and he sniffed at the air restlessly. He jumped to his feet and began to run around the room like he'd gone crazy, barking and jumping between the furniture as if his life depended on it. He hurried down the hall to the door and they listened to him bark desperately. But when he saw that the couple hadn't moved, Mel returned. He bounced up and down at their feet, but they didn't seem to understand his intentions and just stared at him in confusion. In the end, he stole one of the woman's slippers and made a run for the door again. He managed to make the couple heavily get up from the couch and follow him. They found him barking and scratching at the door. He must've gone completely insane.

Or they believed so, until they heard a key wiggle around the lock. Their hearts came to a standstill as they watched the door open. A masculine figure appeared, one they knew all too well. Although he was bigger, a lot more toned, more of a man.

They stopped breathing and began trembling as Mel tackled the man's legs in desperation, and as he pulled him into his arms and cradled him against his neck.

"Mel! How are you? Have you missed me?"

The dog, in response, his face and hands happily.

The boy's grin couldn't have been any wider when he saw his parents' stunned stares.

"Mom! Dad!"

"Aron!"

Hearing him call to them like that, they both rushed towards their son with tears in their eyes. They hugged him before they could even fully come to terms with the fact that they had him in their arms after three sad years. Aron cried as well, remembering how much he'd missed them.

Mel had jumped down from Aron's arms in order to avoid being crushed in the impending hug. He sniffed at the floor. There was something that had him restless, an unknown scent. But no one paid him any attention.

The woman noticed the burn scars on her son's arms, a heavy sensation pressing down on her chest.

"My god!" She lifted his shirt, horrified with the immense scars on his chest and belly. "Heavens! What did they do to you? My poor boy..."

She pulled him into another hug, sobbing harder in a mix of the happiness from having her son again and the pain for everything she imagined he'd gone through.

Mel had discovered the owner of the unknown scent at last. He curiously sniffed at the tall and model thin boy hiding behind a column on the landing, with a girl in his arms, not wanting to interrupt the reunion of his boyfriend and his parents. The yells, the cries, the hugs... He felt happy that his man could be with his family again, but at the same time it hurt not having anyone who wanted him that way, who had been waiting for him, who cried for him... Although that wasn't completely true. He had Aron and Shinhye. They were his family now. They worried about him and cared for him. He wasn't alone anymore. And that couple – now his in-laws – might one day come to care about him too. Maybe he had finally found his place.

He was so immersed in his thoughts that he jumped and screamed when Mel his leg. The man and woman glanced up in confusion, but Aron spoke up before anyone could ask a thing.

"Dad, mom, I want to introduce someone to you. They're two very important people to me, and they're now part of my family. And they're going to live here with us."

The couple watched expectantly as their son went out to the landing and grabbed the boy by his hand to pull him back to them. The stranger's face had gone red as he struggled to lift his gaze, and the girl in his arms clung tightly onto his neck.

"I present you Minhyun, my boyfriend, and Shinhye, our daughter."

Those words caught the couple completely off guard. They knew their son was impulsive but... returning home with a boyfriend and child?! They looked Minhyun over for a moment, analyzing what kind of person their son had gotten together with. But when they saw the way they looked at one another, the look the stranger brought to their son's eyes, the face of absolute happiness on both their faces, and the idiotic smile left on their lips when they kissed in front of them without hesitation... They knew that they truly loved each other, and, besides, they trusted their son. He was impulsive, but his mind was clear and he didn't fall for just anyone. This boy, Minhyun... if their son had chosen him, he must've been a wonderful person.

Their attention shifted to the girl. She was still just a baby. She smiled, happy to be with the two young men. Maybe that girl could be the second child they'd never been able to have. They had the feeling that this peace they hated so much had finally come to an end.

"Minhyun?" The woman called. He looked up at her nervously, and she gave him a smile full of kindness and affection... His mother had never smiled that way. "It's nice to meet you. Welcome to our home." She hugged him. The hug was warm. His mother had never hugged him this way. "And welcome to you too, little one." She added, ruffling up Shinhye's hair. The girl grinned.

"Welcome, boy." The man held out a hand with an equally wide smile.

"Thank you very much," was the only thing he could say, albeit timidly.

"Come in, you must be very tired. And it's dinner time too. Are you hungry?" The woman asked.

"Yeeeesh! A lot, a looooot!"

They all laughed at the girl's enthusiasm and finally huddled into the apartment. Aron grabbed Minhyun's hand as they crossed through the door, and Minhyun got the feeling that here, in this home, with this new family, he'd finally find happiness.

****

Leaning against the windowsill, he contemplated the stars. Those almost insignificant and tiny dots in the dark sky, the sign that the sun was still out there for him. He'd missed it so much...

He sighed, taking a deep breath of the chilly night air, enjoying the breeze in his blond hair.

He felt free.

Two weeks had gone by since he'd returned, since they'd escaped that hell. And although he missed his comrades, especially Baekho, he still needed to spend time with his family. His sister had grown so much...

Suddenly, his mobile vibrated in his pocket, indicated that he had a message.

MinMinMin: Guys!!! I have news!!! I've found a job!!!

The message made him smile, and it became tainted with mischief when he thought of a reply.

Choi_Ren: of what? a trash man? xD

JR: congratulations :)

MinMinMin: ¬¬ no, I have more class than that, blondie!!
            thank you jonghyun!! :)

Choi_Ren: HAHAHAHAAH class... yes, of course

White_tiger_in_love: I see Aron is a housewife. XD

LArapper: eh! don't laugh! my mother is showing me how to change diapers and how to prepare baby food!! and to cook...

White_tiger_in_love: BUAHAHAHAHAHAHA I SEE!

JR: I imagine it and can only laugh. XD

Still laughing, he went back inside, supporting himself on one crutch until he reached his bed and fell onto it.

MinMinMin: it's true, yesterday he burned dinner...

LArapper: I didn't burn it! it was just a little too well done...

MinMinMin: a little? it was in ashes!

LArapper: ... ^^'

White_tiger_in_love: what a disaster

Choi_Ren: well, at least he didn't go running when he saw the flames xD

LArapper: ...

MinMinMin: we have an induction cooktop ^^

White_tiger_in_love: XD

Choi_Ren: bah, that takes all the emotion away

They had started talking through chat the same day they'd separated. Although they'd only spent a few days together, going through all of that, sharing it, had tied them together so tightly...

JR: anyway, what are you working as?

MinMinMin: ...

LArapper: a waiter at the bar on the corner of our street xD

Choi_Ren: WORKING THE CORNER! I KNEW IT!

White_tiger_in_love: eing?

MinMinMin: uuughh!! shut up!! >.<

JR: for your own good and of your family, i hope you're only serving coffee.

LArapper: well, he gives me other things... e__e

White_tiger_in_love: we don't want any details
            (i still don't get the whole corner thing).

Choi_Ren: yes, we've had enough details
            (Darling... working the corner = e xD)

White_tiger_in_love: O.O ok...
            and don't remind me... u.u i'm still traumatized...

MinMinMin: Aron, continue on like this and you'll sleep on the couch tonight ¬¬

JR: uuuuuh...

White_tiger_in_love: *applause*

Choi_Ren: fight, fight, hey! hey!

White_tiger_in_love: XD

LArapper: Oops! Shutting up...

MinMinMin: YOU BETTER

JR: so... Baekho's sister has fallen in love with me.

Ren: LOL?

MinMinMin: O.O

White_tiger_in_love: don't say that. she likes you. she wants you to play with her...

JR: yeah, yeah, but she sneaks into my bed. that doesn't seem normal to me.

Choi_Ren: how old is she??

White_tiger_in_love: leave it, she's six years old. she just wants a bedtime story.

LArapper: well, well, JR, you like the young ones, eh? xD

Choi_Ren: either really old or baby girls... well, well, JR

LArapper: what refined tastes xD

JR: is 'really old' supposed to be Lime? e__e

Choi_Ren: who knows xD

JR: i'll refrain from commenting...

Ren: smart boy

He stretched out on the bed, and a tug reminded him of his broken leg. He remembered so many things... but, in the end, it all ended with him being free. He'd never be in that place again.

JR: Minhyun and Aron have disappeared. What could they be doing? XD

Choi_Ren: hahaha dirty things, JR, dirty things...

LArapper: sorry, I was just making out with my boy and we got carried away...

MinMinMin: DON'T TELL THEM THAT!!!!! >/////<

White_tiger_in_love: as subtle as ever...

Choi_Ren: see? I was right XD next time, we'll kick you out of the chat. first warning
            although it could have been worse. instead of his mouth, it could have been something else...

LArapper: yeah... but my parents and our daughter are home and it kind of kills the mood...

MinMinMin: WHY WON'T YOU STOP GIVING DETAILS????

JR: i knew it XD it seems that you two are very good influences for Shinhye XD

Choi_Ren: if Samuel discovers what kinds of things that poor girl has to see he'll cut off your balls

MinMinMin: ugg... that doesn't sound good... o.o'

White_tiger_in_love: what a traumatic environment...

LArapper: hey! we take very good care of Shinhye!

MinMinMin: yeah! She's with us right now, she says that we send you guys a kiss ^^

Ren: i don't want a kiss from you. who knows where your mouth has been

JR: wait that means you were faces IN FRONT OF SHINHYE

MinMinMin: um... yes... but she was distracted with her toy ball and wasn't looking...

LArapper: besides, she must be used to it xD

MinMinMin: ...

LArapper: and there's nothing bad about seeing that her parents love each other <3

MinMinMin: >///<

LArapper: ^^

MinMinMin: blondie! Shinhye's the one sending you a kiss, idiot! ¬¬ and you say I'm the dumb one...

Choi_Ren: :PPP you said "that we send you" -> we. you're the idiot!

MinMinMin: it's implied that it's from her, meaning that we send it but from her lips!

LArapper: I think I'm lost...

White_tiger_in_love: grammatical discussions at this hour...

JR: it's four in the afternoon .__.

MinMinMin: well it's midnight over here xD

White_tiger_in_love: any hour is bad XD

Choi_Ren: yes, Baek and grammar... xDD

White_tiger_in_love: ... TT^TT

Choi_Ren: you know that I love you all the same <3

White_tiger_in_love: yeah...

Choi_Ren: when we see each other, I'll show you how much e__é

White_tiger_in_love: ... OK

JR: warn me beforehand so I can take the little ones on a field trip XD

Choi_Ren: wow, how little emotion Baek...

LArapper: ooh, the conversation becomes interesting... e__e

Choi_Ren: you shut up. fine, i'll go look for someone who wants me ¬¬

*Choi_Ren has disconnected*

He sighed. He knew that he was getting upset over something unimportant, but he couldn't help it. Having him so far away and thinking of how they hadn't taken advantage of the opportunity when they'd been together... More than that, thinking that maybe he didn't want him in the same way...

His mobile vibrated again. Aron, Minhyun, and JR continued talking, but Baekho sent him a private message, just calling to him.

He opened it.

White_tiger_in_love: Rennie...
            Rennie...
            it's just that I feel uncomfortable when you say that in front of the others...
            but... in the end, you know...

He squeezed the mobile in anger. Why was he making him pay for his frustration?

Choi_Ren: no, I don't know

White_tiger_in_love: don't make me say it...

Choi_Ren: ...it's just that...
            whatever

White_tiger_in_love: I love you

Choi_Ren: but you don't want me

He'd said it. He had asked him what he'd wanted. He didn't even know what response he was expecting.

White_tiger_in_love: ...
            i don't have you close enough to show you

Choi_Ren: I know that... it's fine, leave it.

White_tiger_in_love: Rennie...

Choi_Ren: I miss you

White_tiger_in_love: me too...
            I want to kiss you...
            everything that happened there seems like a dream now. sometimes i get scared that you might not be real.

His heart jumped. He sighed, smiling.

He felt stupid for asking him for something that he couldn't give him from so far away. He knew he loved him. Wasn't that enough?

Yes, it was, partially.

But just as Baekho didn't know how to respond when he said something a little risky, Ren was unable to think of a reply to write when he said romantic things, deep things.

And Baekho knew it.

White_tiger_in_love: you don't have to reply ^^ i love you.

Choi_Ren: thank you... me too, sorry for being pushy ^^'

White_tiger_in_love: when we're together again, i'm going to kiss you.
            there, i said it >/////<

Choi_Ren: you promise? >_<
            , now I feel like a little girl...

White_tiger_in_love: you're not a little girl at all. You're my fighter.
            and I promise that when I see you, I'll eat you up because I'm a hungry tiger.

*White_tiger_in_love has changed username to White_hungry_tiger*

The laughter (or the embarrassment?) made him kick at the air. With his uninjured leg.

Choi_Ren: ok, it's official, i've never blushed so hard in my life >///////<

White_hungry_tiger: hahahaha

Choi_Ren: (i'm going to screenshot this and if you don't keep true to your word, you'll regret it for the rest of your life :P).

White_hungry_tiger: .... are you threatening me? e__e
            and I was here trying to be romanitc...

Choi_Ren: I prefer you savage e__é

Why did he continue insisting on the same thing?

White_hungry_tiger: ...

Choi_Ren: ok, forget that XD

White_hungry_tiger: ...
            ...

*White_hungry_tiger has changed username to Wild_white_tiger*

Wild_white_tiger: I'm a savage tiger...
            >////<

Choi_Ren: >////<
            god, what a day... XD

Wild_white_tiger: totally. XD
            my brothers have been asking me to play with them for half an hour now. I think I'm going to listen to them...

Choi_Ren: good idea
            is it weird to send regards to someone you haven't met?

Wild_white_tiger: a bit, but i've told them about you. It's almost like they know you ^^

Choi_Ren: >_< okay, then i send my regards ^^

Wild_white_tiger: okay ^^

Choi_Ren: I'm going to go wash dishes before my mom comes back and kills me xD

Wild_white_tiger: alright. we'll talk soon. <3

Choi_Ren: later! <3 <3

Before closing the chat, he caught a glance of the phrase underneath his boyfriend's name.

"One time I promised that I'd bring you the sun. Now I promise that we'll see each other again."

And, just as he always did when he saw it, he could only think, "Keep it soon".

Very soon.